milk and honey
by dee-thequeenbee
Summary: for the bi-regina week. short entries featuring several couples.
1. gold

_first day for the bisexual regina mills week. from the three word prompt; wind/gold/ache. regina gets a girl crush._

* * *

 **Gold**

.

 _But I won't let them break me down to dust  
I know that there's a place for us_

 _For we are glorious_

 _._

There is something lyrically beautiful in how she smiles. She twirls around in her gown, her dancing partner catching her amidst envious eyes, eyes of the guests who married for convenience and not for love. But they didn't, not this couple, this couple of a Duke and Duchess her mother has invited to the summer ball she holds once a year.

Regina peeks from behind the column, hidden in a nest of darkness just next to the staircase. She looks down to the great ballroom, her breaths slow and her eyes wide in amazement as she watches them. She is supposed to be asleep, by now, but she has managed to leave her nanny and her chambers while the woman snored softly in her rocking chair.

She doesn't know what has her so fascinated with the woman. It's not the first time she hides in this little spot, to try and pretend she's attending the ball with the other guests, whilst she's still too young to do so. But it is the first time she sees someone that beautiful.

The Duke is handsome, that's for sure. She's actually heard her mother talking to one of the maids about the Duke, about how fine he was, such a strong and poised gentleman.

But the Duchess… the Duchess, with her beautiful smile and her golden dress, makes her heart ache of something new and unexpected, and infuses warmth inside of her, like ichor, like she's honey and belladonna together. She doesn't know what she's feeling, Regina. Maybe she longs for love, at such a tender age – the love she sees between the Duchess and her husband – maybe she longs to be as happy as that beautiful woman is, one day.

Her hair is free, wild like a spirit of the forest, and it's against all the customs of the good society, as her mother says. Her hair twirls and shines around as if the wind is dancing with soft tendrils of sun. She's like a goddess, she thinks, it's like she's the daughter of that Apollo she learned about from her books.

And Regina smiles and watches that precious, beautiful display of love and happiness, and thinks that when she grows up, she wants to be happy just like that, and beautiful, and loved, just like that.


	2. salt

_second day. regina comes out. bandit regina, plus outlaw bandit, plus... a touch of sea._

* * *

 **Salt**

.

 _darling it's better  
down where it's wetter  
take it from me_

.

She knows Robin is following her – she's told him not to, that this is a one-woman job, but… he worries. Despite her best efforts to push him away, to protect him from the Queen, he worries, he cares, and they saved each other multiple times. Still, as she pads on slippery rocks on her way to the cavern, she doesn't turn, but her heart knows he's there.

The Sea Witch is told to be beautiful, unmerciful, and most importantly… not home. If the tales she's heard in the tavern are true, the sailors know their legends, and today her cavern is unguarded. The perfect occasion for her to steal the Heart of the Ocean, the gem that pirate wants in exchange for a safe passage away.

(She tries to ignore, pushing the thought in a corner, that Robin doesn't want her to succeed, this time. Because there may be something more than camaraderie, in the way he tries to guard over her.)

The cavern smells of salt. Regina leaves her boots on solid rock before lowering herself into the water, barefoot, a deep breath and she goes down, down inside a crack between submerged pillars, praying her oxygen will last enough for her to gain another breath. She swims, ignoring the ache in her lungs, until something viscid has enveloped around her waist and she's being pulled up, her hands fighting against humid flaccid skin.

"Well, well," a sweet voice says. "Who do we have here? A little thief?"

She manages to brush water away from her eyes, coughing and spluttering.

The Sea Witch is indeed beautiful, smiling softly, and undoubtedly pissed. She twirls the tentacle holding Regina, and leaves her to fall on dry land. Regina coughs, and coughs, spits water and presses a hand on her chest. Goddamn.

The witch kneels at her side, takes her chin between her fingers. "What on earth," she asks, "possessed you, when you thought you'd be welcome here, Regina?"

"Ursula," she sighs, and does what she does best, she lies. "I… I wanted to see you, to…"

"To apologize?" Ursula laughs. "Too late. But I missed you, I have to admit," she smiles, a glint in her eyes. "Your umpteenth failed robbery, I see, Regina. You're delusional, if you think I'll let you walk away like this. However…" she leans on, "there's no reason for you to swim back home so soon, darling."

.  
.

She's sliding up her boots when he joins her, just outside the cavern.

"Regina? How did it go?"

She doesn't look at him, but takes her satchel from the ground, starts to walk towards her horse. "I… I failed. I don't want to talk about it."

He walks with her, she notices his own horse next to hers. Delightful, they'll be riding together. So he'll have time to push her for the truth. He places a hand on her arm, gently, to stop her.

"Regina, what has she done to you?"

She sees something of rage in his eyes, and shakes her head – she _doesn't_ care for him, but, if he goes back and faces Ursula, he…

"Nothing, Robin. I'm fine, I swear, she… didn't hurt me." And how could she, her old friend, how could she hurt her, after the way they have kissed, the way they have…

"What… what is this?" he questions, his hand sliding up to her neck. He brushes a gloved thumb on her still damp skin, probably red of other lips. "You… oh gods, Regina, did you and the witch…"

She blushes, shame going up to redden her cheeks, because how dare he, how dare he force her to admit this – she could have all the signs and marks on her body and still he wouldn't have a right to this. "It's none of your business," she snarls – angry with him, with Ursula, with _herself_. "I… yes, we _did_ , alright? She's my friend!" Regina exclaims, meeting his eyes in a furious haze. "Now go! Go to the Queen and tell her, you jerk, tell her one more thing she has to add to my posters, _Murder_ , _Treason_ , _Treachery_ , and _Perversion_! Go to hell, and leave me alone, Robin!"

Fat angry tears have escaped her eyes, now, she turns her back to him, the shame she feels threatening to devour her, the blissful and loving moments she's spent with her friend starting to slip away.

"Regina…" she hears him sigh, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have."

She doesn't answers, but furiously wipes away her tears, feeling tired, sad, and rejected.

"You know, I…" he takes a breath, hesitant. "I loved a man, once. And I felt… like I was somehow wrong. But… it's more common than you think, milady. Don't deprecate yourself for it."

To that, she turns, meets his eyes, but she only sees the usual, sincere blue. Her hand reaches out for his. "I can also love men, you know," she whispers. "And… I'm not in love with her… not anymore, anyway. I'm… I think I'm in love with someone else."

She could just drown in his smile, after her words.

"You are?"


	3. red

_day three. regina confronts homophobia. set in young!regina times.  
tw: a bit of blood? _

* * *

**Red**

Her sisters lead her to the forest, and she isn't alone anymore.

Because she doesn't have to run, never again, because a failed hunting trip brought consolation, comfort and the possibility of healing. Red surrounds her when she wakes, slowly, breaths coming back to her like gentle waves.

"You alright, miss?"

The girl speaks softly and smells of blood and fresh, she has brown earth around her fingernails. But there's red, too, with it's the color of her cloak and patches her hands, and Regina retreats cowering like a hunted rabbit.

But the sisters of the moon believe in justice, they chase down her almost-captors and pull her between them, there in their nest of furs and candles. The girl is a wolf, Regina isn't, they make it work – it stings at her nostrils when she smells the odor of death, but Red has eyes like stars and they run, together, they run – magic permeates that hidden corner of the forest where no one can touch her, kings or witches – no one.

Red is the droplet from her knife when she steals the life out a stag, red are her lips when her lover bites her when they make love, and red is the fury – it is not often that they go at the inn, and what of the words of a man who speaks ill of her love?

If they chase him down, her fingers curling around Red's fur, she will laugh and bask into the knowledge that for once, she's in the right. How could a love like this be wrong?

The man spits red when he dies.

But red is now Regina's happiness – she runs in the forest, and isn't alone anymore.


	4. mint

_day five; favourite male-female pairing, obvs oq - even though it leads the way to a doq couple of ficlets. missing year, iridescence verse._

* * *

 **Mint**

He is stealthy, sly at times, but even he can't do much against the creaking doors of the castle. She doesn't even stir when he comes in, her cheek glued to the page she was reading before sleep pulled her under its spell, her mouth slightly open. He loathes waking her, but he must, for she's been here for days – down in the library where spiders are frequent and maybe unkind, and splashes of wax tarnish the wooden tables. There is wax on the green velvet of her dress, a bottle of emerald ink has been knocked down by a misplaced elbow.

He carefully sets down the cup he's brought down all the way from the kitchen, and places a hand on her shoulder. "Milady," he whispers. "Regina."

Her arm twitches slightly, but she keeps sleeping, quiet, so quiet, he starts to rethink his actions when it comes to his mind that he still rather likes the feeling of his head at its rightful place, and maybe she'll be displeased to be woken up – even though her tea smells like mint and herbs, and the first rays of dawn are now battling with the candlelight. She makes a small sound, of displeasure, annoyance, but sleeps, her hair dusty of restless days, her fingers marred by ink drops. The book under her cheek is open, he can spot figures and words, but can't read properly, not in this position.

Regina stirs, a moment, her eyelashes flutter, he tightens for an instant his hand around her arm. "Regina, wake up," he murmurs.

"Mmm," she answers, her mind still too foggy with sleep to formulate a coherent answer. "Thief?" she slurs. "What is it?"

"Time to wake up, your Majesty," he tells her, keeping his voice down. "You have been up all night?"

Regina groans, her hand brushing on her cheek, her eyes finally open, and the brim of red and trails of dried tears on her skin betray her. Her palm is splayed on the book, her head lifts slowly, and Robin catches a glimpse of a black figure when she slams it close.

The table totters at the strong impulse, her tea sloshes in the mug and thankfully stays inside.

"I have been up all night," she confirms, straightens her back even though it has to be terribly sore. "I've been… researching, I…"

"About your sister?"

He's more blunt than he'd intended, but it will do, if it brings her to scowl, as she lifts the cup to her lips. "Not the witch, no," she murmurs. "I…"

Only then his eyes find the titles, golden letters on black covers, _Dragons, wyverns and in between_ , his fingers skimming on the engraved words. He looks at her with questions in his gaze. Her hand trembles slightly around the cup, her other hand curls around his. "One day," she whispers. "Robin, please."

He squeezes her fingers, in understanding. After all – the time they've shared in this life is significant, but he doesn't want to force her. Not now, not ever.

A strong odor of mint permeates the air as she drinks, then positions the now-empty cup above the book. Her eyes close again, his fingers carding through her hair have her smiling. There have been moments like this one, where she is unguarded and allows him to be more affectionate. Never in public, not even with his son, but sometimes.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" he asks, daring, obtains a sober answer in return.

"No," she says. "Not yet."

He doesn't know of her past secrets, he doesn't know of the afternoons of summer haze in a dragon's lair, not yet. He will, eventually. He brushes with his thumb on her hand, taking as little as she allows him to have, and they wait for the dawn in silence.

Not yet.


	5. smoke

_day five; fave female-female couple; dragon queen. leads to doq, so it's also about robin. set during the weeks robin spent in nyc._

* * *

 **Smoke**

She finds her at the docks, a burgundy scarf around her neck and eyes red of tears, scowling at the sea as if it has personally angered her. The most surprising thing is, she's smoking. The cigarette lazily dangling between her fingers, Regina turns to take in her presence, then resumes her sea-watching, unfazed.

"What has you running away, little one?" Mal asks, her brow furrowing. She has to lift a hand to hold her hat, not to let the wind take it away, and at the end she surrenders and tucks it nicely in her arms. Goes to sit on the bench, next to Regina, who's lifting the cigarette for another blow.

"Nothing," she answers, curtly. "I'm fine."

"Again with your usual lies," Maleficent sighs. She knows Regina is like a fire – burns fast and burns everything around her, but Mal is a dragon, much older and wiser, and has the patience to see through her little queen's façade. "You can talk to me, you know."

One last breath of smoke is sent to the fresh air – there's a storm coming, soon – and Regina throws the cigarette down, pressing her heel above it. "I'm pissed," she finally says. Stuffs her hands in her pockets, her chin sinking into the scarf. "I'm pissed because I'm feeling things I don't want to feel, and I'd like not to feel them anymore, but I must. Snow has become exceptionally good at seeing if I still have my heart inside of me."

Mal scoots over, closer in the bench, and passes her arm around Regina's, hooking her hand underneath. Surprisingly, the queen burrows against her warmth, and Mal smiles.

"You're allowed to feel things, you know," she murmurs. "Everyone does."

A pause. And then, a whisper. "I want to forget him," Regina says.

Mal turns just in time to catch her wiping away a tear, with an angry movement that does amaze her. She is in love, after all. Something bittersweet constricts her chest, remembering how a young queen used to love her, once upon a time.

"And he isn't mine anymore."

"I'm sorry, little one," Mal offers. "Maybe you just need some cheering up."

Regina snaps her head to the side, facing her. "Such as?"

Wordlessly, Mal leans on and presses a kiss on her forehead. It's more like a blessing than anything else, maybe it means she has forgiven her, for everything. Her lips linger there for a long moment, Regina tightens her hand around Mal's arm, and a short sob wracks her. "I just wanted to be happy," she whispers, as if the sea could hear her and snatch away what little she has left.

Mal parts her lips, freeing gently her arm from her hold, and passes it around her shoulders. "I can't give you the happiness you seek, I – not anymore, if he's lost to you. But I can give you some relief, darling."

Regina nods wordlessly, a choked _I'm sorry_ erupts like a sob, and Mal won't have that. She offered, she doesn't want Regina to feel guilty. Not over this. She kisses her, and she tastes of tears and vanilla and smoke, her little one, older than she was the last time, but still beautiful and undoubtedly gorgeous.

"Don't cry, dear," she murmurs. "It's okay, I'm here."

Regina's forehead presses on the crook of her neck, as she whisks them away in purple smoke. _I'm here_.


	6. silver

_last day, fave polyamorous relationship; doq._

* * *

 **Silver**

"We really wore her out," Mal observes lazily, as she watches Regina sleep next to them. Robin has covered her with a blanket, then pulled Mal against him, his back against the headboard, her head against his chest. He's kneading her forearm with his fingers, an easy rhythm that has got her sleepy and relaxed.

"You two are amazing, I'll never get tired of you," he replies, with a whisper. "But it's understandable, she's had an hard week."

"She's had an hard life," Mal says, and he supposed she is right, but he can't help but feel a pang of sadness at that. "Sometimes… I just wanted to fly away with her and never go back."

"What stopped you?" he asks, curious.

"Revenge," Mal clicks her tongue, stirs her muscles, pillowing herself better against him. "Mine, hers, both of our revenges were full of hatred and fire and pain. I wonder how you ended up with us."

He's about to laugh, when she lifts her eyes and captures his with the depth of her gaze. She's serious.

"I'm in love with you," he answers, easily enough. "Both of you. You know that," he supplies. "If you love someone, you look past their mistakes, their darkness. I feel like I want you two not to suffer anymore. Ever."

Mal smiles – of that smile he loves so much, and he presses a kiss on the top of her head. She turns again, they both watch the rise and fall of Regina's deep breaths in silence.

"She missed you, you know," she murmurs. "When you were gone, and when you were…"

"…dead?"

It still hurts, that his Regina has had to suffer through _that_. Mal nods. "I… didn't know what to do. For her. Sometimes."

"She missed you too," he tells her. "When we were away, after I met her. She'd search on books about dragons, and I didn't know, she didn't want to tell me. Didn't even trust me enough to pick up herbs for her potions, let alone to tell me about her dragon girlfriend," he laughs softly.

"She was feeling guilty," Mal says, her hand now intertwining with his fingers.

"She feels guilty for many things. As everyone does, love," he answers. "It's in the past now, it can't hurt anyone anymore."

"True," she breathes. "It doesn't matter. It worked out, in the end."

A rush of love springs up in his chest, ferocious, improvise, for these two women who have dared to love again, despite having been hurt many times. His lips fall again on her hair, he presses on as he tightens his hold on her hand. In that moment, Regina moves slightly, curling on her side, her hand hiding under the pillow.

"Let's go sleep, my darling," he whispers to Mal, moving her gently as they slide down under the covers. They curl up too, under the duvet, light blue as a cloud, as the silver moon rays enter from the window.

Mal is in the middle, she's facing Regina as she closes her eyes. Robin looks at them one moment, reveling in seeing them so peaceful. "I love you both," he whispers, and smiles when he hears a half-asleep Regina answer.

 _I love you more_.


End file.
